Are you ready to organize with AFT to improve your working conditions? Unsure what is involved in such a decision? Below are frequently asked questions about organizing with AFT. You may also contact the AFT Public Employees division e-mail at pubemps@aft.org or call us at 202/879-4549 with your questions.

Q. Who can form a union?
A. A broad definition of a union is a group of employees who come together voluntarily with the shared goal of improving their working conditions and having a voice at their place of employment. Under this broad definition, the answer to who can form a union is: anyone who is an employee. The ability to form unions, however, is generally governed by state and national laws, executive orders and labor board regulations. Labor boards serve as the usual authority in the administration of labor laws and set up regulations to decide questions of union representation rights.

Q. Why organize with the AFT? Isn’t that a teachers union?
A. The AFT began as a teachers union in 1916; however, in the mid-1960s the union began organizing other professionals as well. In 1975, the AFT began organizing public employees as more and more states institutionalized collective bargaining for public employees. Public sector employees are attracted to the union’s commitment to both workers and to the services that public employees provide. The AFT has organized more than 100,000 public employees in every level of government: federal, state and local.

Q. How do we get started with the AFT?
A. There are a number of steps a group might take to get a union started. The first step might be to call the AFT Public Employees national office. We will also put you in touch with our state organizations, our regional staff and local leaders in your area who can discuss the benefits of joining with the AFT.

• Forming a union: First, your group needs to determine a core group of people who are committed to organizing workers to act collectively to improve their conditions of employment. This working group or "organizing committee" will be responsible for building a structure for the organization and providing leadership for a larger group of activists who will urge colleagues to make a commitment to forming the union.

• Affiliating with AFT: Affiliation is a two-way relationship. From AFT’s standpoint, affiliation is the process by which a group (an already established local union, an organizing committee, etc.) joins with the AFT. The AFT is a federation of "locals" that are affiliates. From the local perspective, AFT (both at the state and national office,) as well as the AFL-CIO, are your affiliates. AFT requires full affiliation; when your group affiliates with the AFT, your local must affiliate with the AFT state federation, the national AFT and the AFL-CIO at both the state and national levels.

Q. How do we gain union recognition?
A. One way is for the employer to voluntarily recognize a union after the union has collected authorization cards signed by employees showing a majority support for the union. In states that do not allow collective bargaining, the employer can still voluntarily recognize a union. This is relatively rare, but it can happen in situations where the union maintains an effective political action program and where elected policymakers see the value of giving employees a voice at work.

More often, union representation for public employees results from labor laws enacted by state or local government that provide a framework to resolve union representation questions. This may involve a simple check of authorization cards for majority representation or a more complicated petition process with a follow-up election. Where there is a petition/election process, the union launches a "card drive" to collect authorization cards signed by a requisite number of employees to bring about an election. While this requisite number is often 30 percent or lower, it only makes sense to go to an election with an overwhelming 75 or 80 percent of employees signed up on authorization cards.

Q. How does the collective bargaining process work?
A. Collective bargaining is a formal process that gives employees a voice in workplace decisions that affect their job and profession. It gives workers a special relationship with their employer in determining salary, benefits, hours and working conditions. More importantly, the collective bargaining process results in a contract that puts the negotiated agreement in writing. The terms of this agreement are then binding on both the employer and the union. Such an agreement protects employees from arbitrary treatment, and disagreements over the interpretation of the agreement may be taken to a third party arbitrator to resolve differences.

Like a "Bill of Rights," your contract serves as a written guarantee of your rights and duties. Neither the bargaining team nor the employer can change any part of your contract without renegotiating.

With a collectively bargained contract, you will always know what is expected of you and what you can expect in return. Your contract will eliminate much of the uncertainty associated with salary, transfer, job security and other issues. It will also protect you from unfair treatment.

Some local unions are in states that do not have laws that provide for public employee collective bargaining; 23 states allow public employee representation and employer agreements, but the process often falls short of meaningful collective bargaining. In some cases this process may be referred to as "meet and confer." In states where this is the only means of representation available to employees, it makes sense to use the process to the full extent possible until changes can be made to make the process more meaningful.

Our goal at AFT is to work for meaningful collective bargaining rights for all public employees. Only through this democratic representation process can public employees achieve the improvements necessary to protect quality public services and the professions of those who have chosen public service as a career.

Q. What does a typical public employee contract cover?
A. The union and the employees it represents decide what issues to bring to the bargaining table. Those issues reflect what is most pressing to members at the time of bargaining. But you don't have to start from scratch. AFT helps locals develop bargaining proposals, particularly for a first contract, and we have hundreds of contracts on file to show how other public employee unions have dealt with similar issues. Some typical features of a public employee contract include:

• A grievance procedure. This is a mechanism to provide a fair and peaceful way of resolving disputes with managers and supervisors. This procedure protects the integrity of your contract and makes the agreement a binding document.

• Salary schedule. This details the salary increases employees can expect as they gain more experience or take on different responsibilities. Some contracts don't have a salary schedule but create salary minimums for different job categories and a process for promotion.

• Seniority rights. This contract provision usually guarantees that special consideration regarding decisions on layoffs, assignments, transfers, recalls and promotions will be given to those who have worked the longest at an institution.

• Leave. This specifies the number of days allowed for personal use, illness, bereavement, parental care, education, military service or other reasons.

• Insurance coverage. This could include health, life and other insurance plans that are fully or partially paid for by the employer.

• An evaluation process. These provisions can specify when and how employees will be evaluated and what rights they have in challenging evaluations they consider to be unfair.

• Professional development. Our local affiliates are also concerned about employees' professional growth. Contracts may deal with such issues as training, continuing education, certification, release time for conference attendance and other activities related to career development.

Q. What is 'union security'?
A. Union security refers to provisions in the state law or the contract that allow the union to collect dues from employees who become members, as well as to collect representation fees from employees who benefit from union representation but do not join the union. These fees for nonmembers are referred to as "fair share" fees or "agency fees." Union security provisions may be provided for in the state law or may be negotiated between the employer and the union. In any case, these provisions are meant to protect the union's ability to provide meaningful employee representation.

Q. What is the AFT dues structure?
A. The AFT constitution and bylaws require full affiliation with the state and national AFT as well as the state and national AFL-CIO. Members' dues will include affiliation with each of these organizations as well as their own local union dues. The amount of the dues paid to each organization is set democratically by delegates and representatives from the affiliated organizations and are set forth in the constitution and bylaws of each organization. These dues will vary from state to state and from local union to local union. The AFT constitution does provide different dues categories for part-time workers and for those with salaries below a specified amount.

Q. What about political candidates?
A. By law, no money collected by AFT from members can be given to political candidates. So-called paycheck protection advocates would have the public believe that labor organizations use dues for this purpose; however, that is false. AFT does have a political action fund, as do many of our locals, which we encourage members to contribute to so that we can have a voice in the political arena. That fund is separate from dues, however, and is funded only by voluntary contributions from union members. Your basic dues are used to strengthen AFT at all levels through direct servicing from the state and national, through further organizing to increase the impact of unions in your profession and for many other activities.

Q. What are the benefits of belonging to a national union?
A. Members benefit from the support of the union at every level of the organization; federal, state and local. That support includes organizing assistance when employees want to establish a union, bargaining assistance in contract negotiations and research either for bargaining or other issues that the union may face in the complicated arena of public employee representation.

Members also benefit from legislative and political action work conducted at all levels of the union. Since public employees are profoundly affected by what happens in legislatures and by decisions of elected officials, it is important that public employees have a voice and a role in the political process. This helps the union shape policies that affect public employees, ensure appropriate funding for quality public services and improve the delivery of government services.

Some of the benefits of joining a union are tangible products and services. Those include a host of "member benefits," including financial services, group insurance services, discounts on various good and services and other special offers—all of which can be seen on our AFT PLUS Member Benefits page [link here to member benefits page].